THE AFL RUBDOWN | As footy fans we have gone through our fair share of surprises – good and bad. This week’s Round 17 action was packed to the brim with surprise wins and losses which turned the tables on its head.

Well, I’d imagine the ‘awkward conversation with people you don’t normally associate’ count will be at record highs this week, as the quad annual phenomenon known as ‘Footy/Cricket Crossover’ takes its hold.

THE AFL RUBDOWN | Well, if you have suddenly woken up from a coma and wondering what you missed over weekend, there’s a fair chance it was the footy itself that induced the unconsciousness in the first place.

THE AFL RUBDOWN | Not unlike a banana and walnut marble cake, ten minutes into its baking journey, things are beginning to take shape in the footy; as we are starting to get a gauge on who realistically has any chance in taking home the flag.

THE AFL RUBDOWN | It was the round where the AFL dished up the very best, worst, sublime and ridiculous it could possibly muster. Surely it was no coincidence it fell on the same weekend as Eurovision — as the parallels were a bit spooky.

THE AFL RUBDOWN | Round 7 welcomed viewers back to normal programming as all the drama, anguish, pure euphoria and brain-fades returned with a passion — maybe making up for the previous weeks snorefest.

AFL is many things. For some it’s a slight distraction for a few hours, for others, it’s the life force that flows through us and surrounds us, overcoming us with emotion and making other trivial aspects of existence seem insignificant (like food shopping).

THE AFL RUBDOWN | Well, well, well…what have we here then? It seems that all of a sudden without anyone even realizing, the Swans of Sydney not only have been playing matches all season, they’ve managed to win enough to be on top of the FREAKING ladder!

THE AFL RUBDOWN | It’s happened again. The golden cliché that all clubs are supposed to live and die by has claimed some major casualties, and they don’t get much bigger than Collingwood and Essendon – falling victim to the most ancient rule in competitive team sports — ‘ONE WEEK AT A TIME’.